Legislative Watch - March 2023
The LEARNS act largely dominated the conversations surrounding this legislative session. This makes sense of course, the 144-page bill is packed with changes ranging from how Black History is taught (if taught), and it continues the trend of vital services being outsourced by the government to private entities with the promise that things will be better.
Let us remember privatization was also supposed to be the answer for our veterans in Mountain Home, that quality of care didn’t go up, and veteran suicide is at an all-time high, specifically, here. Additionally, at a time in an area where we lead the state in the suicide rate, the LGBTQ community continues to be legislated against. Our legislature claims only 4% of Arkansas self-identifies as LGBTQ and then goes on the offense in session. Arkansas’s legislature is dominated by Republicans, and yet they are leading the culture war they claim to hate.
In regards to the Learns Act specifically, the most absurd revelation, as pointed out by Senator Greg Leding, the legislation as written turns education into the wild west across Arkansas. Want to open a school for Woke studies? Go for it. Want to open a school for radicalized leftover Klan members and patriot front groups… the legislation as written doesn’t prevent it. While the LEARNS ACT did raise teacher pay, it is interesting that the component of the bill most popular is one Democrats and Republican governor Asa Hutchinson supported. What is evident to me is that this legislature played politics by withholding desperately needed pay raises until it could be attached to defunding schools via vouchers.
Very few Republicans were brave enough to stand against Huckabee and our hearts go out to them. Now we wait and watch for the rules committee, and potentially for school consolidation. Much of what has happened in the legislature remains to be seen. As is usual, the devil will be in the details, and as far as accountability goes…there are not many details. Already school boards are unable to determine how to fund the items required in the LEARNS act. Between sending money to private schools and a newly announced 450 million dollar + prison expansion, one has to wonder how Governor SHS will ever fulfill her promise of cutting income taxes. Certainly, a few wise Republicans on the budget committee are sweating blood, knowing it is them who will have to deal with this.
What about locally? Deregulation trends continue with the erosion of qualifications in the veterinary field, (ACT 161). When local state Sen. Flippo was questioned by local Vets about this, his response was the same as he gave teachers questioning LEARNS. Learn to deal with it, because it’s gonna pass. (For clarity's sake, Scott did not sponsor ACT 161, but he defended and voted for it.) Several Republicans did not, but it wasn’t enough.
Sen. Flippo and Rep. Stetson Painter have not inspired confidence so far. Their shadow meeting with local teachers which Flippo exaggerated about on KTLO did not go so well. The revelation in the meeting is that neither our current Senator nor Representative knew about existing school choice laws, and was in favor of the bill before it was even able to be read. Surprisingly Rep. Painter tweeted his support several days before the bill was even available.
Here in Baxter County, the entire local Republican committee (officers and election commissioners) have now been replaced by the Ozark Patriots, whose own brand of politics, doesn’t necessarily mix well with the Flippo/Steton’s resume. It makes us wonder if this might be one of the few times we see incumbents who are unable to secure their committee’s support for re-election. In 2014 Scott infamously won his election through interesting funding and questionable politics that saw John Burris (incumbent) hit the road. Will the same thing now happen to Senator Flippo? Will he be defeated by his own committee like John Burris before him? Likewise, the patriots never wanted Stetson in office and instead chose to support Tom Bryant, who Stetson went on to defeat. It will be hard for Flippo and Painter to find committee support in the event a better candidate more adapted to the platform of the Ozark Patriots steps forward, but the Patriots will have to face the fact that Painter did beat their own candidate, and they will put themselves at risk by nominating the wrong individual. The entrance of a Democrat and Libertarian could further complicate things for the duo in 2024. Republicans have largely enjoyed the pleasure of running with no opponents locally and statewide, but that seems to be trending the other way now.
Additionally, the Patriots, intend to break the “status quo” by going back to paper ballots. Hopefully, you remember hanging chads and the 2000 election, when paper ballots caused issues leading the supreme court to ultimately decide the 2024 election. It’s easier to control the outcome with paper or force the decision into court. When power is the motivation over the preservation of democracy or… just fairness, this is what you get. (Not to mention the cost and time involved). There was no stolen election yet the embarrassing billboards welcoming tourists to Mountain Home still claim otherwise….even Tucker Carlson has had to face the reality with his viewers that it was a lie fabricated so a man could stay in office (and make a little fundraising money too).
Online and to the media Governor Huckabee seems dedicated to making everything she does about Joe Biden. Leading most to think she is vying for her own chance at the presidency or vice presidency or has just learned that keeping the base frothing at the mouth with anger is good politics. I’ve yet to see an Arkansas Republican make an enemy out of people with different ideas as SHS has done, although some certainly want the honor. A look at her Twitter will tell you she hates Democrats. We used to just disagree on policy, but now politicians like SHS have tempted us all to go around and make enemies of the other side, something we must resist. Finding a shred of balance with a governor hell-bent on leading the culture war has been a struggle. We commend her on being the first woman Governor of Arkansas, outside of that it’s hard to find wins. The law requiring all American Flags to be made in America is an obvious move to make and likely comes in the face of criticism over so much campaign material coming from China. (Jury is out on 3rd party merch VS candidate merch).
Child labor laws have been a hot topic although there seems to be mass confusion about what it means. Simply put the government got out of the way between your 14-year-old and a job. The irony is it happened at a time when meat-packing plants in Arkansas are getting busted for child labor violations. Packing companies that have successfully price gouged the American consumer, lobbied congress, and crushed small independent cattle farmers.
There is not much redeemable at the moment. Sarah’s recent idea of a 450-million-dollar prison expansion has us missing Asa and his 100-million-dollar expansion idea. We continue to ignore substance abuse while instead trying to ensure citizens can never get an issue on the ballot again. The Republicans having previously failed to dismantle the citizen’s ability to bring forth amendments on the ballot in 2022, did it through the legislature instead. The voters told them with no doubt that they did not want their power limited, and Republicans went and did it anyway. Sen. Flippo was present but chose not to vote. Very few Republicans voted against the bill. Watching Kansas pass its own abortion law, and watching marijuana nearly become legal was too much for the Arkansas Republican Legislature to take, and the power grab was commenced. Our local Representative Stetson Painter voted for the bill.
The party of a small government is only agreeing to be small when you are smaller. (Act 236)
Regards
Legislative Watch Committee - Democratic Party of Baxter County